FTL in 2013 (Fingertip Length)

[WaitingSoLong]

Ok I know there are some out there who will be with me! Who all is going for FTL in 2013?

I will reach it and pass it, but it is the only real goal I have this year. Possibly I will get to mid-thigh but FTL is the only goal I am actually trying for right now. I am in uncharted territory and have no idea how long I will grow my hair before I decide to stop or cut back. I don't really care how much longer my hair gets as my last real goal was Classic and I have reached it. I should hit FTL around April.

So just like the Classic thread I will post everyone who joins the journey in this post. I would like your starting length in inches or cm, how many inches or cm FTL is on you and, of course, the difference. Just follow my example.


1. WaitingSoLong: SL: 43.5", FTL: 45" 1.5" to go
2. Reishka: SL: 40.5", FTL: 45.5" 5" to go
3. Sparrowswing: SL: 42", FTL: 45" 3" to go
4. Hairizona: SL: 42", FTL: 46" 2" to go
5. Lostsoule77: SL: 41", FTL: 47.4" 6.5" to go
6. JamieLeigh: SL: 44", FTL: 48" 4" to go
7. Skyblue: SL: 41.5", FTL: 45" 4.5" to go
8. Rhodugune: SL: 44", FTL: 48" 4" to go
9. italianamama: SL: 40", FTL: 45" 5" to go
10. Cirafly24: SL: 49.5", FTL: 51" 1.5" to go
11. Anabell: SL 44.8", FTL: 48.5" 1.7" to go
12. nobeltonya: SL: 44.5", FTL: 47" 2.5" to go
13. jel: SL: 46.5", FTL: 48" 1.5" to go

[reishka]

I'll go for FTL! I'll probably reach it and surpass it by just a little bit. I never have any real goals for my hair, but this could be pretty fun. :) My measurements are close (not exact) because I suck with a tape measure!

SL: 40.5" FTL: 45.5" TO GO: 5"

[sparrowswing]

I feel awkward posting here, since I'm not at CL yet, but if this picture (http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz235/CeruleanSiren/LHC/CLvsFTL_zpsdc510d54.png) is anything to go by, I'll be hitting the two milestones at roughly the same time. I haven't managed to get a consistent measurement, but from the picture it looks like I have 2-3" to go. I'll try to get DBF's help with measuring when we're not both down with the flu, but for now here are my estimations:

SL: 42" FTL: 45" TO GO: 3" (ish)

[Hairizona]

I am going for FTL next...
Current hair length is 44".
FTL on me is 46".
Length to go: 2"
I expect to be in the category of this "great expanse" for the next 2 years.
WSL- I'm glad you left your length alone- your hair is lovely!

[WaitingSoLong]

Well it's a small group!

[Lostsoule77]

I missed this before. I'm currently at 44" (with a few fast ones at 45".) I am heading for fingertip this year pending how much I get trimmed off this month. FTL is (I think) 47.5" so 3.5" to go.

[JamieLeigh]

I'm definitely in! Like you, I can reach it and pass it within a matter of a few months, but I'm determined to maintain at FTL to thicken up my hair overall. I'm not ready to cut back to hip length, and that's where my visible thickness ends. I am a couple of inches past classic right now; I'm 1/3 of the way between CL and FTL.

SL: 44" FTL: 48" To Go: 4"

[skyblue]

Well I'll go for it, I made it to 42 1/2 in the other thread but trimmed back to 41 1/2, my ends were soooo thin!
I'm not real confident I'll make it but what the heck lets give a try lol!!
41 1/2 now finger tip is 45 inches---4 1/2 inches to go!

[Lostsoule77]

Anyone else find it amusing when looking at how much we have to grow to get to FTL? In inches 1.5, 2, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, & 5.

[sparrowswing]

We need a 2.5"!

[WaitingSoLong]

LOL I missed that! I was just thinking we are all fairly close. In the Classic thread last year we had some with a goal of 10" at one point. Maybe more I can't recall.

[Lostsoule77]

I know there are a few people on here that grow an inch a month, but that still sounds so crazy. I'm just hoping after my trim (probably next week) that I can still make it.

[Vintagecoilylocks]

LOL I missed that! I was just thinking we are all fairly close. In the Classic thread last year we had some with a goal of 10" at one point. Maybe more I can't recall.


It will be very exciting to see such a group make it to FTP. Best wishes ladies.

[JamieLeigh]

I know there are a few people on here that grow an inch a month, but that still sounds so crazy. I'm just hoping after my trim (probably next week) that I can still make it.

I have hairs that will grow ALMOST an inch per month...somewhere just above 3/4". But it's not my whole hemline, just the racer hairs that are in the direct back and center of my head. It causes me to have to trim more often, which is kind of more maintenance than I'd like, just to be honest. I'm a fan of benign neglect. :(

[Lostsoule77]

What would happen if you just put it up and forgot about it without trimming?

[JamieLeigh]

I did a no-trim year in 2011, actually, just to see how far it would go if I left it alone. I made it to knee length in eleven months with those racer hairs. Granted, there was a LOT of fairy-tale action (I was by no means solid knee-length) and the ends were invisibly thin unless I wore black, but I did it. Classic to knee on me is just short of 12", and I started at 1.5" past classic with a full, thick hemline in January 2011. By the end of November 2011, I was very thinly touching knee, and when I finally cut back to TBL in January of 2012, I had made it an inch an a half past the crease in the back. It looked awful!! :lol:

So...to recap, I grew 10" in 11 months. If I were a lover of FTE on myself, I'd have been ecstatic, but I'm really not. I like to look at FTE on other people, but I prefer thick, full hemlines on my own hair.

[WaitingSoLong]

I am ok with some FTE's, I think, so long as they are not invisible like you say. If you can't see it, it's kind of like it's not even there. I have, to this point, always kept my hemline even, a slightest U shape. It started it to fairy-tale on me in 2011 and I trimmed it back. I am hoping eventually my thicker hair will move down my length. I think knee with a solid thick hemline is gorgeous.

[reishka]

I don't think I could do FTE. Mostly because I'm in the camp of 'benign neglect' ... I don't trim. I oil infrequently. I usually have my hair up in a cinnabun (I am NOT a morning person and that gets me out the door), but I'll sleep with it either loose or in braids. And no matter what I do, I manage to have a thick hemline. I love my hemline. So unless there was some kind of drastic change that forced me to have FTE, I think it's too much work. ;)

[Vintagecoilylocks]

I don't think I could do FTE. Mostly because I'm in the camp of 'benign neglect' ... I don't trim. I oil infrequently. I usually have my hair up in a cinnabun (I am NOT a morning person and that gets me out the door), but I'll sleep with it either loose or in braids. And no matter what I do, I manage to have a thick hemline. I love my hemline. So unless there was some kind of drastic change that forced me to have FTE, I think it's too much work. ;)

I think FTE developes naturally from different growth rates on your head. Sounds like your growth rate is balanced from the canopy to the nape which keeps a even hem line. The same growth rate produces what I call the stair layers due to the shape of the head. Then some create the shorter in front to back V. Or a combination of both. If you don't have to trim and you have an even hemline than you have the growth pattern which keeps the front and canopy faster than the nape and rear thus createing an even hemline.

[Lostsoule77]

When I first started on here I didn't think I liked FTE's either. Yet I've gotten them because I haven't trimmed at all. And I kind of like them. I realized that I like them on wavy & curly hair, but not straight.

[JamieLeigh]

I should clarify...my FTE's were not normal FTE's. I had see-through hair from around classic length all the way down to knee. I really did not like the look of it at all. :( Part of that was due to the massive shed in 2010. Thanks to another massive shed in early 2012, I now have see-through from hip-upper TBL down, but I'm hoping that reaching FTL and maintaining for the rest of this year will help me solve that problem.

It's a tad confusing going from talking about FTL to FTE's, and I hope nobody else is confused as to what we mean. Then again, the fact that most of the time I'm able to check LHC is when I should already be in bed asleep might have something to do with that. :lol:

[Rhodugune]

Oh please add me, I have missed that this thread existed.

My current length is 44 inches and have about 4 inches to FTL... might get there this year, there is always hope. :D

[Lostsoule77]

I had a trim today and am back down to a little over 41". I don't think I will make FTL this year, but I'm still going to try.

[JamieLeigh]

Lostsoule77, here's hoping for a growth spurt! :) Your trim looks very nice, judging by your sig pic.

[ravenreed]

I am in! I keep hovering around classic, but my goal length is a braid long enough to go completely around my head. I suspect that will be fingertip. I have 3.5 inches to go. FT is my final goal. I have no intention of growing any longer. I am at my limit in terms of hair heaviness and caring for it...

[WaitingSoLong]

ravenreed, my braid could go around my head around TBL I think...that is weird. Can you give me a starting length in inches?

[Lostsoule77]

Thank you JamieLeigh. :D

WSL thanks for updating my info. :)

[WaitingSoLong]

I do try to keep things updated ;)

I cannot believe there are only 8 of us! We had so many for the Classic thread last year.

[Shepherdess]

Well, I reached fingertip length last year at about 46 inches and now I'm at 47 inches. It is a great thread idea! :)

[Miasen]

I was going to join here as soon as I got pictures taken, and then I finally got around to that last night and... I think I am already at FTL!

But I'm overdue for a trim, so we'll see how long it is after that, maybe I shall coem back to join, ;) Good luck with the growing everyone!

[Islandgrrl]

I'd like to join! I'm currently at classic, 43". I have to get some help to measure what FTL is on me...tomorrow I will post!

[italianamama]

Oh me!!! Me me me!!!! Yay!!!! I'm at juuuuuuuust Classic, 40 inches. FTL on me is 45 inches. Last year's growth was super duper slow, but I'm hoping I can hit FTL at least. What a great goal idea!

[JamieLeigh]

I'm definitely in! Like you, I can reach it and pass it within a matter of a few months, but I'm determined to maintain at FTL to thicken up my hair overall. I'm not ready to cut back to hip length, and that's where my visible thickness ends. I am a couple of inches past classic right now; I'm 1/3 of the way between CL and FTL.

SL: 44" FTL: 48" To Go: 4"

I am THIS CLOSE to 45" ---> _ after a month of not trimming, and my hemline still looks pretty decent. I imagine it will start to look uneven by the beginning of March. :lol: Once I definitely hit 45", I will have 3" to go and be halfway between CL and FTL.

[JamieLeigh]

I now have 3" to go until FTL. I'm officially at 45". :)

[WaitingSoLong]

Well I have looked FTL since January but in reality I have a little ways to go yet. If you look from the side, it looks like I have a couple more inches to go. From the back, it looks like I am there:
http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/Mar2a_zps0c557499.jpg

If I measure where my fingertips are from the top of my head, then where my hair is, I have a 1/2" yet to go.

ETA: Here is a pic I took last month, a half inch ago:
http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/DSC01893a_zpsc7b1ac6c.jpg

[Cirafly24]

I'd like to join :) I'm at 49.5" and I think FTL is around 51" on me (tall with long arms!), so I have about an inch and a half to go. Not much of a goal, I guess...but I'm just waiting for the postpartum shed to derail my efforts, so it may end up being a challenge after all!

[Anabell]

Hey everyone! I'd like to join too! I was waiting until I have some help with the measuring. So my current length is 44.8''. Fingertips length on me is 46.5''. I was really surprised to find out that I much more close than I thought. Here is my first length photo:
http://i1247.photobucket.com/albums/gg634/ebest60/Mitsy%20hair/IMG_1179_zpsc33b5913.jpg

[WaitingSoLong]

Welcome Anabell!

I should reach goal around April 1st, though it will take a couple more months to really look FTL.

Then I will probably cut my hair. I am over it!

[Anabell]

Welcome Anabell!

I should reach goal around April 1st, though it will take a couple more months to really look FTL.

Then I will probably cut my hair. I am over it!

Thank you. It was a great idea for a thread, anyway. I think that you need to enjoy from your hair. And from what I have read, you been thinking about that for a long time. I hope you will have fun from your hair and share some photos after the new haircut. I personally love haircuts (yes. I have to admit). The ends is so fresh and it feels like I get a whole new head of hair (I can satisfy my passion with microtrims. lol). I saw your length picture, and TB length looks awesome on you.

[WaitingSoLong]

Thanks Anabell! At this point I really want to cut but I am wondering if I will chicken out.

I want to hit true FTL first. My next step is knee and I just don't see myself going there anymore. Plus there is a long wait between FTL and knee.

[JamieLeigh]

Lovely hair, Anabell! :flower: Welcome to the challenge as well, Cirafly24.

WSL, I HATE HATE HATE the difference in length we get when we view our hair from the side rather than the back. I was well past classic from the back by the time I looked it from the side and it frustrated me so badly! :p Good luck with that last half-inch! I'm at 45.75-ish" (but I'm not changing my sig until 46" on the nose), so I still have 2.25" to go.

[Anabell]

Thank you JamieLeigh. I was happy when I finally reach classic!

So, ladies, what you are doing in between?
I have some questions:
What is your to-go hairstyle in this length?
How often you wear it down, if you does?
How the people around you feel about your long hair? Is they encourage\discourage you to grow out?

I will answer first:
Most of the time I wear braids. I do a lazy wrap bun twice a week because i have to. I have two chemistry labs in this semester, and it is compulsory to wear your hair up (from obvious reasons). A long braid isn't considered like updo. I really concern about this, because almost any bun make me feel uncomfortable, and I get scalp ache (that how you say that? It sounds funny. Sorry about my English) after couple of hours. I don't mind about the feeling. I just afraid that thous buns will cause more breakage and splits. I always worry about the meaning of the symptom and not about the symptom itself.
I wear my hair down most of the day in the wash days (twice a week).
My environment is really indifferent about my hair. When I start grow it out my mom and sister was against, and advice me maintain the haircut instead grow it out without any shape. But now my mom say that my hair is beautiful in this length :) All the people around me (family and friends) just used to my hair, so they don't pay attention to it. I can walk in the room with the most amazing hairstyle and no one would notice. They comment just when I ask them. I don't get almost any comments from strangers, good or bad. Maybe people just don't care this much about hair, especially when the hairstyle is in the back...

[JamieLeigh]

I have a cross between the nautilus and the lazy wrap that I love to do, since I can't really do either one of them and have them look exactly right. I also love messy folded ponytail buns, inverted cinnamon buns (just pull the center loop out and make it the outer loop before forking or sticking), braided Chinese buns, regular braided buns, regular English braids...so many great styles. :)

I barely ever wear it loose unless I am at home and not doing anything of which my hair would get in the way. I get mainly positive comments from others, and my own family are so used to seeing me with it this long, that it doesn't even faze them anymore. I started growing it out from shoulder length in 1990 and it's been waist length and longer since 1993. It's been classic length and longer since 2009. Like you, they only comment when I have a new hair-toy or if I ask them whether they like my updo. Hahaha!

[WaitingSoLong]

Thank you JamieLeigh. I was happy when I finally reach classic!

So, ladies, what you are doing in between?
I have some questions:
What is your to-go hairstyle in this length?
How often you wear it down, if you does?
How the people around you feel about your long hair? Is they encourage\discourage you to grow out?

I will answer first:
Most of the time I wear braids. I do a lazy wrap bun twice a week because i have to. I have two chemistry labs in this semester, and it is compulsory to wear your hair up (from obvious reasons). A long braid isn't considered like updo. I really concern about this, because almost any bun make me feel uncomfortable, and I get scalp ache (that how you say that? It sounds funny. Sorry about my English) after couple of hours. I don't mind about the feeling. I just afraid that thous buns will cause more breakage and splits. I always worry about the meaning of the symptom and not about the symptom itself.
I wear my hair down most of the day in the wash days (twice a week).
My environment is really indifferent about my hair. When I start grow it out my mom and sister was against, and advice me maintain the haircut instead grow it out without any shape. But now my mom say that my hair is beautiful in this length :) All the people around me (family and friends) just used to my hair, so they don't pay attention to it. I can walk in the room with the most amazing hairstyle and no one would notice. They comment just when I ask them. I don't get almost any comments from strangers, good or bad. Maybe people just don't care this much about hair, especially when the hairstyle is in the back...

What I bolded is exactly right. I have mentioned this before but all updo's apparently look the same to non-long hairs. I cna do this most elaborate braid thing and people will not even notice.

What do you use to hold up your bun styles? Very rarely does using a hair stick pull on my scalp but I have worn the nautilus as my "go to" bun for so long I noticed I am starting to get a sore place on my scalp. And yes, scalp ache is an appropriate term. I don't see buns causing breakage or splits unless you use a lot of bobby pins. However, constant pulling on one part of the scalp can cause traction alopecia (the hair will begin to fall out there)


I have a cross between the nautilus and the lazy wrap that I love to do, since I can't really do either one of them and have them look exactly right. I also love messy folded ponytail buns, inverted cinnamon buns (just pull the center loop out and make it the outer loop before forking or sticking), braided Chinese buns, regular braided buns, regular English braids...so many great styles. :)

I barely ever wear it loose unless I am at home and not doing anything of which my hair would get in the way. I get mainly positive comments from others, and my own family are so used to seeing me with it this long, that it doesn't even faze them anymore. I started growing it out from shoulder length in 1990 and it's been waist length and longer since 1993. It's been classic length and longer since 2009. Like you, they only comment when I have a new hair-toy or if I ask them whether they like my updo. Hahaha!

Jamie what you call an inverted cinnabun I know as a Gibralter. Hmm....

I can count updo comments on one hand: 3
1. A lady asked me how I had my hair up with a stick. She was growing out her hair and was curious.
2. A lady that sits behind me in church commented on all the "neat buns" I do (after staring at them an hour every Sunday for a year)
3. Another lady at church asked about my hair stick (was more of a toy question than a bun question) because she has hip length hair and still does just messy buns.

That is it.

Almost every comment I get is when I wear my hair loose, which, like Jamie, is rare. And once someone has seen my hair loose once, they never comment again.

My go-to style lately has been a low L infinity bun. How I insert the stick makes a difference on whether it pulls or not. It didn't used to pull, so there must be something about this length. I am using double-wrap buns now for most my buns. It makes them less...protruding...and also more secure however it does hold them tight enough I am concerned about scalp issues. I am slowly modifying them.

[sparrowswing]

My go-to style is a basic nautilus bun. Usually I keep it at the top of my head, because DBF thinks it's cute, and I can sleep in it more easily than any other style I've found. I tried WSL's double-wrap nautilus, which is flatter and thus works a bit better at the back of my head (so it's a better style for going out), but it falls out a lot easier. I can't wear it to sleep at all; I'll wake up halfway through the night with my hair loose and the crochet hook I use to hold it up lost somewhere in the sheets. My secondary style would be a sort of folded bee butt bun, held with a u-pin. It used to be my go-to style, before I learned how to do a nautilus. Now I mostly use it in/after a shower.

I'd say I wear my hair down on average about once a week. I tend to go a couple of weeks without wearing it down, but then I'll wear it down a few days in a row. It doesn't take long to get tired of it always being in the way, though. I will admit it stays out of the way better now than it did at TBL. If I want to show off my length (just because I feel like it, since I get no reaction), I usually just do a simple English braid. I can do French/Dutch braids, but my ultra-fine, wispy hair doesn't like being divided into small sections and tends to tie itself into knots while I'm trying to braid.

Like everyone else, it seems, my hair gets no reaction. Here are the only hair-related comments I can recall:

1. My dad exclaiming that my hair is getting really long. He's been trying to get his own hair to grow out, so it's kind of like getting noticed here on LHC.
2. A friend exclaiming that my hair is amazingly soft after playing with the end of my braid at a party. This just led to his girlfriend getting angry because he never compliments her hair and ranting about how the secret to soft hair is pure genetics.
3. After having a 15-minute conversation with a fellow staffer at a convention about his hair and how he's been growing it out, I pointed out the vortex bun I was sporting at the time, complete with four little accent braids. The response: "Oh, wow, that's intricate!" I don't think he could come up with anything actually positive to say. :/

Wait... back before I hit BCL a random stranger in line behind me at a Greek restaurant commented to her daughter that my hair was very long, and the daughter responded that it was pretty. So that was the one time I've gotten a real compliment about it "in the wild". I don't think I've gotten a compliment on a style in the wild since my junior prom.

I think you're right about all buns looking the same to non-longhairs. The same could be said for braids, up to a certain point. I think it's why I like hanging out here so much and posting pictures. Even if I don't get a single response, I know someone here will have seen it, probably liked it, and at the very least appreciated it for what it is.

[JamieLeigh]

I wear it down when I'm out of the house maybe once every few months or so. It stays really windy around here (the area I live in is trapped between mountains and a river), so it drives me nuts to wear it down. I satisfy myself with a ponytail or an English braid when I'm in the mood to show off my length. ;)

[WaitingSoLong]

So I have my measurements marked out on the wall of my closet and I was checking to see how far from FTL I am and realized my measurements are at least an inch off!

SO I remeasured and remarked my wall and it turns out I have 2.5" still to go to FTL instead of a half inch (??!!). SO...that means FTL is 47" on me instead of 45! Looks like it will be the end of summer before I hit FTL afterall.

Knee is another 6.5" down. If my hair stays fantastic and I don't get breakage and have consistent growth (and don't cut lol) I could reach knee by about September 2014. But that is pushing it. Probably more like the end of the year.

[Vintagecoilylocks]

So I have my measurements marked out on the wall of my closet and I was checking to see how far from FTL I am and realized my measurements are at least an inch off!

SO I remeasured and remarked my wall and it turns out I have 2.5" still to go to FTL instead of a half inch (??!!). SO...that means FTL is 47" on me instead of 45! Looks like it will be the end of summer before I hot FTL afterall.

Knee is another 6.5" down. If my hair stays fantastic and I don't get breakage and have consistent growth (and don't cut lol) I could reach knee by about September 2014. But that is pushing it. Probably more like the end of the year.

Oh just face it and accept you are a long hair lover. Delete that phrase "cut back to waist" from your vocabulary.

[JamieLeigh]

Oh just face it and accept you are a long hair lover. Delete that phrase "cut back to waist" from your vocabulary.

^This. :D :D :D

[WaitingSoLong]

Yes I do love long hair but maybe just not on me. Sort of like how I love cats, as long as they are not MY cats.

[Vintagecoilylocks]

Yes I do love long hair but maybe just not on me. Sort of like how I love cats, as long as they are not MY cats.

Knee in 2014

[nobeltonya]

SL: ~44.5", FTL: ~47", To Go: ~2.5" :disco:

[jel]

Hi, I'd like to join, please! I just noticed this thread.

My ends are at 46.5" currently, and FTL seems to be 48" - so I should really get there this year, even if I trim an inch or so.

Good luck, everyone! :D

[JamieLeigh]

Welcome to the fun, nobeltonya and jel! :)

I took a photo earlier today and I appear to be right on target for FTL at the end of next month. I'll upload it when I get the chance.

ETA: Well never mind that, then. I took a better look at that photo once it got uploaded to my computer from my phone and BOY did I ever measure wrong. FTL is NOT the same as mid-thigh for me, so apparently I hit and passed it already. I feel stupid. :p This is what I get for not taking good length shots more often, I guess. I had to get Mr JL to measure it for me several times in different lighting, just to be sure, but I am at 46.5" in this shot and it is past my fingertips.

http://i557.photobucket.com/albums/ss17/Jamichka/Hair%20Stuff/Photo4102W_zps9aabc796.jpg

[Anabell]

Hey everyone!
JamieLeigh, congratulation on reaching FTL! It looks so soft.
Here is the photo from my last post here:


http://i1247.photobucket.com/albums/gg634/ebest60/Mitsy%20hair/IMG_1179_zpsc33b5913.jpg]
And this is my hair from today- a braid waves from going with braided bun all day long (I have a chem lab today. This is the only time I wear buns. lol) so it look a little messy.
http://i1247.photobucket.com/albums/gg634/ebest60/Mitsy%20hair/6c29ebf4-e280-474a-8ab5-316157372a3c_zps57d68ea4.jpg (http://s1247.photobucket.com/user/ebest60/media/Mitsy%20hair/6c29ebf4-e280-474a-8ab5-316157372a3c_zps57d68ea4.jpg.html)
The red arrows is some kind of mark for comparison- this is the horizontal line of my pocket. FTL is like 2-3 cm after this pocket line.
The ends look so wispy. I seriously consider to grow until reaching FTL and then trim back to classic. The thing is that the ends are in very good condition (despite all the dyeing thing years before) so I don't want to cut it (I microtrim once in a while though. If feel good (soft, shiny sometimes) but look very bad because it thin and very bright. It look like fried hair (god knows. I never use a flat iron in my life. It is a red chemical dye...).

[Vintagecoilylocks]

@ Anabell Not far to go. And it is so nice and full and pretty.

[JamieLeigh]

Thank you, Anabell! :flower: Your hair is amazing! If you're not there already, you are sooooo close!

I had intended to grow just a little past fingertip and trim back to that marker and maintain there for the rest of the year...so far I haven't trimmed yet, though. I'm awful. :p

[sparrowswing]

So I'm actually a little beyond 44" now, but I'm still not sure if FTL is 45" or slightly more for me. Photo for reference. ( http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz235/CeruleanSiren/LHC/April_zps86e3b77a.jpg) Going by that, it looks like I only have about an inch to go. *shrugs* I suppose I'll wait a couple more months and see.

WaitingSoLong, I really love your new cut. I loved your hair before, but that hemline is just gorgeous, and the length is very flattering for you.

[WaitingSoLong]

Thanks sparrow!

The wind is floating your hair a bit to the side so hard to tell but I would say...not quite there yet.

I guess I should update and say that I reached FTL, so I met my 2013 goal, and then cut my hair back to waist. If you want details you will have to look at my blog ;) But you can see my new siggy.

[Anabell]

Hey everyone!
Just took a lenght picture today and it looks like I made it! it just the very ends of it, but it solid FTL. I'm so exited! This is actually the second milestone I have acheived since i'v joined LHC. I was considering to cut it back to classic (even before it start to be so popular here. lol) but now I don't want to. I will try to maintain in this length to let my last layer to catch up. I do SDS occasionally so splits is no problem to me. I have no problem with farytails ends (that what the SDS cause, eventually) but it will be great to get rid of the last layer. It make the taper look really bad and sudden.
Here is the length shot:
http://i1247.photobucket.com/albums/gg634/ebest60/Mitsy%20hair/1773068c-c3bc-4854-8ee4-68234ded764f_zpsa54ad5cd.jpg (http://s1247.photobucket.com/user/ebest60/media/Mitsy%20hair/1773068c-c3bc-4854-8ee4-68234ded764f_zpsa54ad5cd.jpg.html)

Here is one good demonstration for my two layers:
http://i1247.photobucket.com/albums/gg634/ebest60/Mitsy%20hair/18e780db-d476-42ab-bfc8-04deb407dedc_zps107b12bb.jpg (http://s1247.photobucket.com/user/ebest60/media/Mitsy%20hair/18e780db-d476-42ab-bfc8-04deb407dedc_zps107b12bb.jpg.html)
see this sudden tapper? Just one layer to go, and it will be all in one length...

EDIT: this last photo is from February so my hair is a little bit shorter

[WaitingSoLong]

Looks great! I have to say, of all the long-hairs I see in real life (where their hair is loose so I can tell) I rarely see anyone past TBL. TBL is rare but it is around. Classic is almost non-existent as is FTL and beyond.

[WaitingSoLong]

Ok here is my first monthly comparison since my big cut.
http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp17/Poetry4me75/Monthly%202013/May-June2013_zps30f91073.png (http://s393.photobucket.com/user/Poetry4me75/media/Monthly%202013/May-June2013_zps30f91073.png.html)

I cannot get the ratios to be perfect no matter how hard I try.

But I gained 5/8th inch this month! That is GREAT compared to my usual 1/4" lately.

[sparrowswing]

WSL, that's really the best you can hope for. I can see the growth in the picture, so it works. ^_^ (I'm still in awe of how gorgeous your hair looks at this length!)

So my longest strands are just brushing fingertip right now (it turns out 45" was right). I'm starting to get some serious taper, though. Enough that I'm wondering if I really want to keep growing to knee. I've spent the last few days debating whether I want to trim a couple of inches just to get a more even hemline or just keep growing. So far, the growing option keeps winning because it's the equivalent of not making a decision.

http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz235/CeruleanSiren/LHC/almostFTL_zps886e05a0.png~original

[WaitingSoLong]

It was 45" for me, too, just brushing FTL :)

I feel kind of sad leaving you all behind so I thought I would update a bit.

[sparrowswing]

Thought I'd drop in and post a progress shot. I hate taking them in the summer, because my hair is always frizzy and it seems to always be windy or rainy or both. I can check the weather a dozen times, and by the time I get my hair brushed out properly and grab the camera, a storm rolls in. Makes me wish I had a nice place indoors to take pictures. Maybe I just need a wide-angle lens for my camera so I can get a shot of it all from within a room.

Anyway, I pretty much always stalls through the summer, so there's not a lot of growth to see; it's around 46" now. And because of the wind and brightness, I had to look at the negative to make sure my hair didn't get shorter, lol. So here are both:

http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz235/CeruleanSiren/LHC/DSCN5630_zps7d1ddc3a.png

Gosh my ends need a good moisture treatment...

[Vintagecoilylocks]

FTL for me is like a rediculous 50 inches. I am at 45 now. Maybe next year. Boo Hoo:knitfrog::wail: So I hope I make it. :pray:
On the bright side I will then only be 5 inches from knee. Anyway you ladies have some awesome hair.

[jel]

OK, I just remembered I need to withdraw from this group. The tips of my V-shaped hemline may have reached FTL - or close - but I didn't care any more. I wanted them gone, and I trimmed my hair to somewhere between hip and BCL. I've realised, although fingertip is a magical length in my eyes, my ends at this stage were decidedly not!

I think I would like to maintain around BCL for a while, and maybe, some time in the future, try for FTL again. I'm not sure if it was the bad quality of the old ends (after all, they were the ones that got the bleach and highlights before I found LHC and started to grow my hair) or my terminal length is around classic, but one day we'll find out!

Best of luck to others still on this journey, and congrats to those who've already made it! :flowers: